Tindle Triumphs in Timely Fashion

Words and photos by Ian Tocher

This past weekend at Montgomery (AL) Motorsports Park, Pro Modified star Tim Tindle provided living proof of the drag racing cliché that consistency is king.

A past competitor in ADRL Pro Nitrous, young Thomas Jones II of Somerset, KY, showed up in Montgomery with an absolutely spectacular, blown ’67 Shelby Mustang built by David Monday Race Cars in Rockford, TN. Jones ran 3.95 seconds to qualify the BAE Hemi-powered Stang third, but slowed to 4.21 in a first-round win over Sam Brown, then lost with a 4.50 to the 4.12 by Joe Baker in round two.

Right behind Bil Clanton with a career-best 3.77 at 198.58 in his Screw-blown ’53 Studebaker, Tindle qualified his Roots-blown, Hemi-powered, NHRA-legal ’67 Mustang GT in second place for this year’s final Southern Outlaw Tour event with a 3.94 pass at 196.07 mph. Placing third was Thomas Jones II at 3.95 and 185.95 in his brand-new David Monday-built ’67 Shelby Mustang.

A total of 23 cars made attempts at breaking into the sixteen car Pro Mod field, with James Hancock III making a rare appearance behind the wheel and securing the last qualified spot with a 4.37 at 163.72 mph in his son, Jamie’s, new ’68 Firebird out of the Precision Racecraft shop.

The first of the non-qualifiers was Joey Martin, who never managed to hook up in official qualifying with the replacement ’55 Chevy “Lowmad” he recently completed at his Milton, Florida, shop for car owner Toney Russell. Martin still left happy, however, after setting a new track ET record with a 3.73 second test pass at 195.86 mph in just the fourth pass down the track for the all-new Lowmad.

And despite pitching a rod through the block at the end of his third and final qualifying attempt, Martin said he and the car will be at Ennis, TX, next weekend for this season’s final ADRL event, thanks to a block on loan from Tindle at Montgomery.